The Father's Approval
by 1980s-popito
Summary: "But I do know this: I love your daughter, and I would do anything for her. And because I love her, I am willing to go to the ends of the earth just to earn your respect and approval, and I will not stop trying until the day I do."
1. Part 1: The Meeting

_**The Father's Approval**_

 _ **Part 1: The Meeting**_

Buckaroo's heart pounded in his chest out of nervousness as he- along with Peggy- walked up to the house. But this was no ordinary house visit. The reason this visit was so nerve-wracking to him was because he was meeting her parents for the first time since they'd started going out for two years now.

The young couple was taking one of their visits back to the United States during one of their college breaks. They partly took so many trip so they wouldn't catch the British accent they were always around, and partly an experiment to see if it would work, a trick that Buckaroo had been trying out since he first started attending the college in England and had eventually passed onto Peggy as time went on and as their relationship progressed.

The progression of their relationship was part of the reason the two were visiting Peggy's parents- John and Rosemarie Simpson. Buckaroo and Peggy were visiting New Jersey since he'd been told there was a piece of land for sale that would be perfect for his planned institute, and the location was only twenty minutes away from Peggy's childhood home where her parents still lived. Since they had the chance, it was suggested that they would visit since the three people she cared about most had never actually met.

"Ok," Peggy started as she stopped walking and turned to face her boyfriend, "It's just my parents, ok? My mother is excited to finally meet you after two years, so it's guaranteed she'll love you."

Buckaroo gave an odd look. "What about your father?" he asked.

She hesitated a moment. "Well, he's my dad so of course he's pessimistic about any guy I bring home. You just have to win him over, that's all. It' shouldn't be that hard for you since you're so good at that."

"On the contrary, in this case. I've never really been in a situation like this before, Peggy. I have no experience. So in all honesty, I'm terrified to meet your father."

"Does it make you feel better that I was nervous the first time I met Professor Hikita?"

"Very slightly."

"Well then, does it also help that I'll be next to you the whole time?" Peggy asked and straightened his near signature bow tie a bit.

Buckaroo smiled a bit at her. "That helps," he answered with a smile. She smiled back at him as the two walked up to the front door. She knocked on the front door and the two stood at the door waiting, their hands and fingers intertwined together as they waited.

A moment later, the doorknob clicked and turned until it opened and a woman appeared in the doorway. The woman looked to be middle-aged, but didn't look old at all. She had blonde hair, a kind face and gentle eyes. Her facial features showed strong resemblance to Peggy's, which made Buckaroo guessed that the woman was his girlfriend's mother, Rosemarie Simpson.

"Peggy!" the woman smiled and pulled the younger woman into a hug, "We've missed you so much! I've been looking forward to this since you first told me two weeks ago."

Peggy laughed and hugged her mother back. "It's good to see you again, too, Mom," she smiled then acknowledged her boyfriend, "Mom, this is my boyfriend, Buckaroo Banzai. Buckaroo this is my mother, Rosemarie."

Rosemarie smiled at him and pulled him into a gently hug to greet him. "It's so wonderful to finally meet you, Buckaroo. Whenever Peggy writes to me from Merton, she always mentions you in her letters."

Once the two stopped hugging, Buckaroo smiled and looked at his girlfriend. "You write to your mother about me?" he asked with a light chuckle.

Peggy gave a teasing look. "Maybe a little," she answered with an innocent shrug.

Rosemarie stepped out of the doorway, allowing her daughter and her boyfriend into the house. The young couple stood waiting in the small foyer of the house as the elder woman closed the door behind them and led the two to the living room. She told the two to sit down on the couch while she went to look for and inform her husband that their daughter had arrived with her boyfriend on one of their usual trips to the United States from England.

"At least my mom already likes you," Peggy said with a chuckle, "Already halfway there."

"Now, I just have to win your father over," Buckaroo stated and let out a deep breath, "This should be an interesting dinner."

"Oh come on, don't be so pessimistic. Where's that bright determined, optimistic scientist I fell in love with in the library, huh?"

"I believe he's outside on your front porch at the moment."

She ran her hand up and down his arm in an attempt at comfort. "It's not gonna be as bad you think. Look, it's just dinner, then we're spending the night, then breakfast. That's all, alright? I'll be here the whole time, so it shouldn't be too painless with both of us here. And besides, even then, my father has a soft side for me, so he might just decide to like you for that."

"You know, I never knew true nervousness like this until I met you," Buckaroo pointed out, "But for you, it is definitely worth it."

Peggy smiled. "Good, cause it makes you seem less like a robot when you get that way," she teased, making him laugh.

The two turned their attention to the older couple that walked into the room. Rosemarie Simpson walked in with her husband, John, whose face held no expression. As the young couple stood up, he looked over the young man that stood next to his daughter, their hands intertwined together. His wife held onto his arm like a patch to a person who was trying to quit smoking, almost like she was the thing holding him back from doing something. John glanced down at their intertwined hands then back up at the younger men. He then shook off his wife's hold on his arm, turned around, and walked into the kitchen.

Rosemarie had a nervous look on her face. "Um," she stuttered, "He's just checking on the cooking. I'll come back for you two when it's done." Then she dashed out of her room after her husband.

Peggy looked up nervously at her boyfriend. "He's never acted this bad before," she mumbled, "I'm sorry."

Buckaroo planted a gentle kiss on her left temple. "It's ok," he said, "But now I'm determind to gain his approval to continue dating you."

She smiled. "There he is… the determined, bright, optimistic scientist from the library."

A few minutes later, Rosemarie called the two to the dining room, saying that dinner was ready. The young couple sat across from the elder couple at the table. As they all sat down, Buckaroo pulled out Peggy's chair for her and pushed her in like a gentleman, causing her mother to give an impressed smile. Her father eyed him and every move he made cautiously, his face still showing no emotion. The young couple shared weird looks at her father's look, then the mother and daughter did the same.

"Well," Rosemarie said and slightly cleared her throat, "Everyone ready to eat?"


	2. Part 2: The Questioning

_**The Father's Approval**_

 _ **Part 2: The Questioning**_

The four at the table began to eat. As they did, there was an awkward silent tension cause by the so far obvious annoyance by John Simpson. The other three would exchange weird and desperate looks due to the tension caused by the elder of the two men that were present. Every so often, one of the three would glance at the elder man, usually the two women at the table would send him a sad or disappointed look, which he never noticed. This continued all throughout the dinner, and continued until Rosemarie brought out coffee once the meal was finished.

"So, Buckaroo," Rosemarie started, having enough of the silence her husband had created, "Peggy told me that you're studying to be a neuroscientist, is that right?"

Buckaroo nodded. "Yes, that's right," he answered, "I've been majoring in it for three years now, along with my own personal studies with multiple other sciences. I've also been working on music theory and instrumentals."

Peggy gave a proud smile as her mother gave an impressed look. "Your parents must be very proud of you."

Peggy panicked a bit. "Uh, Mom-"she started, but was cut off.

"Peggy, it's alright." Buckaroo's voice was almost as quiet as a whisper.

Rosemarie looked confusedly at the two sitting across from the young couple. "Did I say something wrong?"

"It's fine. I'm guessing Peggy didn't tell you about my parents in her letters?"

The elder woman still looked confused. "No, she didn't. Is there something wrong?"

Peggy had a sad look on her face. "Mom, Buckaroo's parents were killed when he was five years old." Her tone of voice was quiet, but loud enough to be heard.

For the first time since dinner, John Looked up, all traces of annoyance or irritation running from his face. He remained silent as he waited for a response from his wife.

"Oh my gosh," Rosemarie gasped slightly, "I'm so sorry, I had no idea."

"Really, it's fine. I mean, it's not fine that they were killed, but as I grew up I learned to live with it. They're actually part of the reason I chose to become a scientist. They were scientists and I remember being with them for a few experiments that were left unfinished. The man who raised me after their death, who was very close with them and studied with them, found old journals a few years ago that had everything they'd ever studied and accomplished, so I decided I would become a scientist to finish their studies for them. That's also part of the reason I plan on starting a scientific research institute as soon as I graduate, and your daughter's agreed to join me."

Rosemarie smiled as she continued then to question her daughter's boyfriend out of genuine curiosity. She asked questions about the upcoming institute, their plans for the institute, his scientific endeavors, his music, and anything else that branched off from those subjects. Peggy would interject every once in a while, but she pretty much just watched with a smile, happy how her boyfriend and mother were getting along. Her smile was also pride in her boyfriend and his dreams and plans for life, that she had been included in as they dated. Then every once in a while, she'd catch a glance at her father, who watched the two talking, his face still showing no emotion; that was what bothered her the most.

Peggy had always been close with her father, ever since she was a little girl. Sure, he could be a bit overprotective over her at times, but she knew that he always meant well. As a teenager, she'd brought home two now ex-boyfriends, and he'd acted overprotective with her then. But in any case, it made since for him to be that way with her and any boy she had been interested in. But as least he had talked to those two ex-boyfriends; this time, her father hadn't even said one word to her current boyfriend yet, who she'd felt the most love and admiration for than any other man that was not related by marriage or by blood to her through her father or her mother, and quite honestly it was starting to bug her.

As the evening progressed, Rosemarie had begun to clean up everything from dinner. Peggy had volunteered to help her mother in the kitchen, hoping that maybe her father would finally talk to Buckaroo. She felt bad about leaving the two alone, but she figured that maybe there would be something her father would say to him that he wouldn't want his wife and daughter in the room for and that's what he had said nothing yet… at least, she hoped this would be the case, and that if it was, it would work out fine.

"Daddy hates Buckaroo, doesn't he?" Peggy asked quietly and sadly as they washed dishes; she had always called her father "daddy", even as she got older unless she was serious or mad about something.

Rosemarie turned and gave her daughter a sad look. "It's not that he hates him," she tried to explain, "It's just that your father is very stubborn."

"But he hasn't even given Buckaroo a chance yet, Mom! He could at least do that."

"I know, I know. Look, sweetheart, if things don't get better by the end of the night, I'll talk to your father about giving him a chance."

As the two Simpson women talked in the kitchen, the head of the house and the guest of the house were in the living room. John stood at the in home wet bar, pouring himself a drink, and Buckaroo watched cautiously from his seat on the couch. There was an awkward silence between the two, the only sound being the elder man pouring his drink into his glass. Once he finished, he walked over and sat in his chair that was opposite from where the younger man was sitting on the couch.

"Sure you don't want a drink, Banzai?" John asked.

"No thank you, sir," Buckaroo answered surely, "I'm fine."

The elder man nodded. "So you've been dating my daughter for two years."

"Yes, sir, that's right.'

"I wasn't asking you, I was stating a fact… anyway, how would you say you treat Peggy?"

"Overall, very respectfully, sir."

"How do you mean that?"

"Well, I treat her as an equal, mentally, just like she's told me she prefers. I like her for her mind rather than just her beauty."

"You're not using her for her mind, are you? Cause my Peggy is a very bright girl and has been all her life, and I don't want some _"hot shot scientist"_ using _my_ little girl for his all scientific achievements."

Buckaroo gave an odd look. "I would never do that," he said, "I would never do that to anyone, especially your daughter."

"You better not," John said sternly, "Cause if I find out you did something like that to _my_ daughter, you'll be sorry." He then turned and stormed out of the room. As he did so, Rosemarie and Peggy had begun to walk into the living room. They both gave worried looks as the head of their house started to the back door. His wife quickly followed after him after saying "maybe you two should get some sleep" to the young couple, and the two nodded.

Peggy slowly and sadly walked over to her boyfriend. "I'm so sorry," she mumbled, "I don't know why he's acting this way. I shouldn't have left you alone with him."

Buckaroo quickly and gently took her into his arms in attempt to comfort her. "It's alright," he whispered, "And even after that, I'm not giving up. We still have tomorrow morning before we go to look at that piece of land."

The young couple then retreated to the second floor and Peggy's old bedroom, where the two would be sleeping for the night.


	3. Part 3: The Approval

_**The Father's Approval**_

 _ **Part 3: The Approval**_

"You need to give Buckaroo a chance," Rosemarie stated harshly and forcefully, "You've barely said anything to him and you're treating him horribly."

"I just want a good man for my daughter," John said, "Is that so wrong?"

"Are you kidding me? He is _everything_ we have ever wanted in a man for Peggy! Why can't you open up your eyes and see that?"

He was silent for a moment. "I don't wanna lose her like we lost her sister."

When Peggy was born, she was born a twin. Due to complications, John and Rosemarie had been told that the second baby didn't make it and had been stillborn. After the devastating news, the couple had decided to protect their surviving child any way they possibly could without seeming overbearing. They'd never told their daughter about her sister, and didn't plan to until they passed and there would be a letter for her in their will; they couldn't bare the idea of having to explain something like that to their sweet daughter, and they knew it would break her heart, and they didn't want to see her so broken. As their daughter aged, along with their vow to their daughter, they had ideas of the traits the man their daughter would eventually marry would have, at least what they wanted him to have. But now that the man had been found, John wasn't sure if he was ready to let his daughter go.

"We're not going to lose Peggy," Rosemarie said, "And if they ever get married, which I can see happening in the future, we'd be gaining a wonderful son in law, not losing a daughter. Did you see how they would look at each other during dinner? That's how you look at me, John. Just think about that, and remember, they leave tomorrow morning after breakfast… and one more thing: try to remember how it felt when _you_ were trying to gain _my_ father's approval when _we_ were dating. Maybe then you could understand what those two are trying to do." She kissed her husband's cheek, then made her way up the staircase to their bedroom.

While the elder married couple talked, the younger couple did the same in Peggy's bedroom. Since there was no real guest bedroom, and the two could both fit in her old bed, they'd established they could share the bed. They'd done the same thing in hotels whenever visiting America during their breaks from Merton College, so it wasn't a big deal to them to share a bed. Mrs. Simpson had no trouble with the idea, but made sure to tell them her one and only rule, which was: "No funny business." Her rule made the two young people share an embarrassed look: her daughter's cheeks turning pink, and her boyfriend's ears to turn red as he rubbed the back of his neck out of his embarrassment. Their reactions made the woman laugh a bit, saying, "I know what it's like to be young and in love, so don't deny it and I won't tell anyone. Deal?"

"You're not upset about today turned out, are you?" Buckaroo asked his girlfriend hopefully.

Peggy shrugged a bit and sat down on her window seat. "I feel like I should be asking you that," she sighed, "I mean, I hate the way my father's treating you, but at the same time, I love seeing you so determined to gain his approval."

He sat down next to her at the window seat; she leaned her head against his shoulder and he wrapped his arm protectively around her shoulders. "You know, if it makes you feel better, Professor Hikita still likes you from a few months ago when you first met him. And I firmly believe that my parents would love you if they were still here."

"That actually does make me feel a bit better, thank you. And to follow what my mother said at dinner…"

"Yeah?"

"Your parents would definitely be proud of you for all you've done and plan to do," Peggy said with a smile, "Just like I am." He smiled back at her, taking her words to heart. Not long after, the two decided to go to bed. While sleep didn't come too easy for either of the two, they both eventually fell asleep comfortably in each other's arms, and would stay that way until morning.

The next morning, the first to wake up in the house was Peggy. When she saw Buckaroo still asleep next to her, she couldn't help but smile; it was a rare thing to see him so peaceful and relaxed like he was when he was asleep that every time she saw him asleep, she cherished it. She tried to get out of the bed without waking him up, but frowned when she saw that he had woken him up. The two then got ready for the day, then went downstairs to the kitchen to cook breakfast for themselves and for her parents.

The elder couple both gave surprised looks when they reached the dining room and saw that the two young people had made and served breakfast for all four of them. The four all ate breakfast together, the only person silent: John Simpson. While Rosemarie, Buckaroo and Peggy all talked while they ate, he sat there eating and watching the three in silence. He didn't look mad, and he didn't look happy, but he rather looked… neutral. In all honesty, it made the three a bit nervous, but they tried to hide it and ignore it as best as they could.

Once breakfast was over, the young couple prepared to leave the house and go look at the property that they'd been told would be the perfect future site for the planned research institute. As they did this, the elder couple cleaned up after the meal in silence. The whole house had this silence, and the tension was so thick that a person would be unable to cut through it even with a chainsaw. The women in the house wished the last twenty-four hours had been more enjoyable for all four in the house and less tension filled, but sadly, this was not the case.

"It was so nice to finally meet you two," Buckaroo said in a respectful tone as they all walked to the front door.

"It was so wonderful to meet you, too, Buckaroo," Rosemarie smiled.

John grunted irritably as he mumbled, "Wonderful, my eye." While he said this, he had hidden intentions that only he knew about after thinking about what his wife had said, that would be a test; at this point, he hoped that Buckaroo would pass.

Buckaroo's face contorted into annoyance. _That's it,_ he thought, _I've had enough of this._ "Ok, Mr. Simpson, before Peggy and I go, there's something I have to say to you before it drives me completely out of my mind."

"Fine, go ahead." _It's working,_ he thought.

"Mr. Simpson, what do you have against me? Ever since I first walked through this door yesterday, I have bent over backwards trying to impress you, and it's quite clear that it's done nothing. It's obvious that you dislike me. I have tried to be respectful toward you and that didn't work. I tell you how I treat your daughter with respect and you accuse me of using her for her mind for the institute I plan on opening in the near future, which she has agreed to help with, then you threaten me without giving me a chance to say anything and irrationally. Now I know you don't like me, and I believe it's quite clear to your wife and daughter that you don't like me, and I don't know why. But I do know this: I love your daughter, and I would do anything for her. And because I love her, I am willing to go to the ends of the earth just to earn your respect and approval, and I will not stop trying until the day I do. And all of that? It wouldn't be for my sake of mind, it'd be for your daughter and her wish that you would approve of our relationship, and how she wants your approval even more so than I do."

John kept a straight face. "Are you finished?"

"Yes, sir, I am."

"Good, cause there's something I want to say to you, Banzai." Peggy and her mother exchanged nervous looks, then she did the same with her boyfriend before the three looked cautiously and worriedly at the man of the house. John cleared his throat before saying: "You got it."

The three gave confused looks at his words. "Excuse me?" Buckaroo asked in a confused tone.

"You said that you would go to the ends of the earth to try and gain my respect and approval. And after that little lecture, I say that you've earned it… any man that is willing to stand up to me for my little girl and her wish for my approval of her relationship, deserves my approval."

The three all smiled at his words, and he smiled as well. Peggy jumped to hug her father, then hugged her boyfriend, both of whom hugged her back. Rosemarie also hugged her husband before whispering, "I knew you'd come around," with a smile.

When the elder man held out his hand, Buckaroo accepted it and the two shook hands in a mutual agreement. "Thank you, sir," he said with a smile.

John smiled a bit as well. "Call me John, Buckaroo," he said with a smile, and the younger man nodded.


End file.
